Co-leader of Scottish Greens admits coalition with government could fail

Party members and climate campaigners were furious after the Scottish government announced on Thursday that it was scrapping a longstanding legally binding target to cut Scotland’s carbon emissions by 75% by 2030.

In an unprecedented revolt, Scottish Green party members, including senior councillors, accused Harvie and co-leader Lorna Slater, both of whom are government ministers, of abandoning one of their most cherished policy goals.

Yousaf also faces pressure from increasingly critical centre-right SNP MSPs, who argue the Bute House agreement and the Greens have tied the Scottish government to electorally unpopular and unworkable strategies, including on recycling, gender recognition and marine policy.

The Rainbow Greens rebellion was triggered by the announcement on Thursday that the Sandyford clinic, Scotland’s only gender service for young people, was pausing the use of puberty blockers after the Cass report for NHS England.

Carroll tweeted on Friday: “With the council tax freeze, climate targets scrapped, and MSPs who run rampant with transphobia, the SNP have shown a lot of contempt in the past year.

Booth, one of the Greens’ longest-serving councillors, said Harvie needed to produce much more convincing proof that the power sharing deal was working to win the emergency vote.